Sikeston holds off Poplar Bluff in regular season finale, 83-80

Standard Democrat

POPLAR BLUFF, Mo. – The Sikeston Bulldogs closed out the regular season in thrilling fashion on Friday night in Poplar Bluff.

The Bulldogs withstood numerous runs by the Mules and overcame foul trouble to hold off Poplar Bluff 83-80.

The Mules’ Isaiah Nevel had a decent look at a potential tying 3-pointer with just a few seconds remaining but it was off the mark as the Bulldogs celebrated the victory.

Sikeston has not lost a road game at Poplar Bluff since 2009 and the Bulldogs have never lost in the new Poplar Bluff gymnasium, winning all four games against the Mules since 2017.

“It was a tough road game for us,” Sikeston coach Gregg Holifield said. “I was really proud of our effort. We had guys step up. We had players in foul trouble, but at the end of the day we figured out a way to win.”

Sikeston (19-7, 4-4 SEMO Conference) faced some adversity with leading scorer and rebounder Dontrez Williams battling foul trouble throughout the game, but Bulldog sophomore Lekereon McCray was ready to pick up the slack.

McCray turned it on in the fourth quarter, scoring 19 of his career-high 35 points – almost all of them coming on drives to the basket, four times drawing the foul for the conventional 3-point play.

McCray, who is normally one of the top distributors on the team, shot a sizzling 87 percent (13 of 15) from the field, including 3 of 3 from 3-point range.

The Bulldogs needed every bit of it as the Mules were splashing 3-pointers in the third and fourth quarters, hitting eight of their nine treys in the second half, some coming from beyond NBA range.

“We were running a spread offense and it put Lekereon in a position to get to the rim and he did a great job of hesitating and getting around his guy and getting to the rim,” Holifield said. “I’m really proud of how he played. With Dontrez in foul trouble, I thought Tristan [Wiggins] really stepped up and played well. It was a complete team effort.”

Sikeston led from the start and never trailed, opening up a 21-15 advantage after the first quarter.

The Mules (9-15, 3-5 SEMO Conference) were able to close the gap in the second quarter, trimming the Sikeston lead to 37-34 by halftime.

Wiggins helped carry the Bulldogs in the third quarter, scoring nine of his 11 points in the period as Sikeston extended its lead to 59-55 heading into the final frame.

Sikeston led by as much as 11 points in the fourth quarter but the Mules’ 3-point attack made a game of it.

A 3-pointer by Mar’Lon Hickman-Roberson cut Sikeston’s lead to 82-80 with 11 seconds remaining. The Mules called timeout and on the ensuing possession quickly fouled McCray with nine seconds left.

McCray hit 1 of 2 from the line to extend Sikeston’s lead to 83-80. After rebounding, Poplar Bluff’s Gavin Rivers had trouble getting a clean look. He passed to Nevel, whose tying 3-point attempt bounced high off the rim, and the clock expired before either team could secure a rebound.

“Credit to them, they made some difficult shots,” Holifield said of the Mules. “They stepped up from long range and knocked them down, but our guys did a good job in the second half of getting on the boards and drawing charges and taking away inside situations.”

Williams, despite the foul trouble, finished with 17 points, 10 rebounds, five assists and five blocked shots.

Wiggins, in addition to his 11 points, grabbed seven rebounds with five assists.

Senior post Quemariae Gray drew three critical charges for the Bulldogs that had the effect of keeping the momentum on Sikeston’s side.

The Mules were led by Darius Graham’s 21 points. Hickman-Roberson scored 14 while Rivers had 12 and Brendan Durden had 11.

Sikeston will now turn its sights to the Class 5, District 1 Tournament hosted at North County High School. The Bulldogs are seeded second and will play seventh-seeded North County on Wednesday at 7 p.m.

“Our guys have had a really good year,” Holifield said. “We’re 19-7 right now. We come into practice to work. We’re a young team that’s improved every day. We’ve had some bumps in the road, but we’ve been really consistent with our work in practice.”

Sikeston 21 16 22 24 -- 83

Poplar Bluff 15 19 21 25 -- 80

SIKESTON (83) – Lekereon McCray 35, Dontrez Williams 17, Tristan Wiggins 11, Chris Artis 8, Creighton Sarakas 7, Morgan McCauley 5. FG 30, FT 14-24, F 18. (3-pointers: Williams 3, McCray 3, Artis 1, Sarakas 1, McCauley 1. Fouled out: Williams).

POPLAR BLUFF (80) – Darius Graham 21, Mar’Lon Hickman-Roberson 14, Gavin Rivers 12, Brendan Durden 11, Preston Moore 10, Isaiah Nevel 7, Dallas Williams 5. FG 30, FT 11-19, F 23. (3-pointers: Durden 3, Hickman-Roberson 2, Graham 1, Rivers 1, Moore 1, Williams 1. Fouled out: Durden).

Junior varsity

The Sikeston J.V. team finished its season with an undefeated record at 16-0 after defeating Poplar Bluff’s junior varsity 81-58.

This is the fourth time that a Sikeston junior varsity has had an undefeated season in Holifield’s 25 years at the helm.

Sikeston was led by freshman Ben James with 20 points, nine rebounds, 10 assists and four steals.

Sophomore Marcus Sanders had 18 points. Malachi Davis had nine points and five rebounds.

“I’m just really proud of our guys,” Sikeston junior varsity coach Will Holifield said. “This team isn’t the biggest or the quickest or the highest jumpers, but they have the most heart. They absolutely came out and fought every night and battled and showed grit and I’m just so proud of these guys.”

Sikeston 14 23 23 21 -- 81

Poplar Bluff 4 14 23 17 -- 58

SIKESTON (81) – Ben James 20, Marcus Sanders 18, Malachi Davis 9, Isaiah Jimerson-Patterson 8, J’kwon Applewhite 8, Jaharus Goodwin 6, Kobe Thomas 6, Will Lape 4, Drake Williams 2. FG 33, FT 10-23, F 14. (3-pointers: James 3, Lape 1, Applewhite 1. Fouled out: none).

POPLAR BLUFF (59) – Jay Edmundson 15, Dallas Williams 11, Blaise Rowland 10, B. Parkin 6, Jackson Moore 6, Micah Inscoe 4, Camerson Settle 4, Kade Busse 2. FG 22, FT 6-14, F 22. (3-pointers: Parkin 2, Rowland 2, Williams 2, Edmundson 1, Inscoe 1. Fouled out: none).

The Sikeston junior varsity completed its season with an undefeated record of 16-0 after defeating Poplar Bluff's J.V. team 81-58 on Friday.Submitted Photo